Noise on real cold days

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Michelob

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My 2008 Civic has had nothing but Motocraft semi syn 5W20 so far has some noise on the very cold days at startup and maybe up to a minute or two. Shouldn!t be the oil and as I recall did last year too. Think it could be the Puralator PureOne oil
filter. Not due for an oil change yet but maybe I will change it and try a Honda filter. 33,000+ right now.
 
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are you sire it is the engine and oil related? Could the belt be getting flaky? tensioner? In the cold, I sometimes notice the belts offer a funny groan as load is applied to the alternator, etc.

please describe the noise. If it is some sort of a ticking, then it may well be the filter. Ive noticed that when I used fram and wal-mart filters in the past.

is the filter on its side or up and down?
 
What is cold to you, and what does the noise sound like?

If it's ticking, than that could be oil related. But if it's worth creating a time and money hole to throw things into in search of a fix is debatable.
 
Could it be piston slap? I've noticed with some ford and GM v-8's I can hear the piston slap at the tail pipe. Can you hear a tapping sound at the tail pipe on your Civic?
 
When I've started my vehicles at -40C I've often heard alternator and/or power steering noise. Are you sure it wasn't one of those?
 
Originally Posted By: bepperb
What is cold to you, and what does the noise sound like?


We had some lows of 0 - 2*F.


I would try another filter for the heck of it at the next change. 0*F is no big deal for MC 5W20, so it's not the oil.
 
I have the same problem that occurs at ~50F and lower on my F150 with 38k miles on the odometer. I've analyzed the sound in every way and at every angle, even recorded the sound with a mic with oil cap off and inside the oil tube. I've come to the conclusion, it is piston slap. It seems to be more common than I initially thought. It seems low friction engines have a little bit more cylinder/piston clearance (confirmed this using official Ford workshop manuals from previous years) along with aluminum alloy pistons that have a different thermal expansion rate than the block. Mine sounds a little like a diesel for about the first 3 - 5 minutes or till the coolant temperature gauge is at the quarter mark. I've read many conflicting posts that claim thinner and thicker oils quiet it down, as well as, synthetic vs conventional. The only consistency I could find is that alot say this seems to be normal for these engines. I guess it depends on how annoying the sound is. For me, I never hear it during the summer and it goes away pretty quick.
 
I think some people are more sensitive to the sound than others. I mean, you really have to listen carefully to notice it. And I notice it because I drive my truck all the time, so I notice even the most minor changes. I think the average person doesn't notice it. Some people are obscessed about it, so they really notice it. For me, it has to be around 50F and lower, first start of the day, put in gear with handbrake, and then listen to it around the fender well. The only reason I first noticed it was because the sound is amplified off the walls in the garage. Having said all that, some people's engines are louder than others.

Some people claim Mobil1 makes it more noisy, others the opposite. I haven't experimented, but I found several threads here in BITOG alone talking about cold start up noise not related to lifters or dry starts, but more like piston slap.
 
Probably piston slap. I know the feeling. I have a Chevy truck that has definite piston slap. It sounds very "wrong" ... I have just had to learn to practice mind over matter. Its not a problem, just how it is. But man, it sure makes you want to DO something.
 
I am not sure how to describe it but I would have to believe it is the engine but I could be wrong. It is when the temps go to the teens that it happens. I also don!t listen to try and find sounds but this is obvious. The reason I questioned the filter is because I have read in the small filters the folds are very heavy in the filters and even remember some person questioning if there could be a problem in cold weather with the PureOne as far as flow was concerned. Don!t remember where but they were rating the filters and had cut them open to report on build quality.
 
I run into this with my 06 Silverado, its not a daily driver and there are times in the winter when i wont even start it for a week. Ive noticed the "knock" for the first 10-15 seconds till the oil gets moving. Never a issue in the summer, only when the temps drop below 20 or so, and only when its been 5+ days since its been driven.
 
Real common. Aluminum pistons that fit just right when hot are loose in the cylinder bores when cold...aluminum expands more when hot and contracts more when cold than iron does. My Tundra does that. There is an engine tick when cold, and it goes away in a minute or less as things get warm. Just drive easy until things get warm.

Some oils damp noise better than others. The noisy ones don't lubricate less well, they just transmit sound better. Don't worry.
 
My car has a knock/tick when it's cold but when it's warmed up it's very quiet. I attribute it to the shrinking/expansion of engine parts during temperature cycles. Plus, it's an aluminum engine so it transmits sound more than an iron block would.
 
I ran Fram Toughgaurds for over ten years on an old Caddy I have and never heard a lifter noise on start-up until I changed to a NAPA Gold filter.

I heard the Frams were junk these days so I switched to the NAPA Gold which I understand are the same as PureOne.

I'll be switching filter brands the next oil change and see if the problem goes away.
 
Originally Posted By: modularv8
I think some people are more sensitive to the sound than others. I mean, you really have to listen carefully to notice it. And I notice it because I drive my truck all the time, so I notice even the most minor changes. I think the average person doesn't notice it. Some people are obscessed about it, so they really notice it. For me, it has to be around 50F and lower, first start of the day, put in gear with handbrake, and then listen to it around the fender well. The only reason I first noticed it was because the sound is amplified off the walls in the garage. Having said all that, some people's engines are louder than others.

Some people claim Mobil1 makes it more noisy, others the opposite. I haven't experimented, but I found several threads here in BITOG alone talking about cold start up noise not related to lifters or dry starts, but more like piston slap.


+1

I think [if you listen real hard] all engines sound slightly different when you first crank it up in the am no matter what the temperature...But its only for a couple of minutes if that.
 
Most noises that originate at start up ..where the filter is responsible (remember MOST), are over in a very few seconds. A lingering noise is exceptional and usually points to the oil pump as the origin ..which wouldn't be likely in a 33k vehicle.

My wife's jeep makes all kinds of weird sounds if it's in the teens. I think one is the throwout bearing. It almost sounds like ..hmm.. like a dual pitch tone. Maybe a muted steam whistle would work for a description. It's not a belt screeching and it passes quickly.
 
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